1) Our fans traveled to this game well, but they still suck. An anecdote from one of my dear friends, a Deekens Brother (who I really wish I could see and speak to more often than I do):
I came to the game and sat 16 rows back in the UVA section and had countless people ask me to sit down even when the ball was on our side of the field. One asked if I had ever heard of being a Virginia gentlemen. I hate our fan base! They don't deserve a good program. No more excuses on why our fans suck! This was a great game on ESPN and I got applauded when my friend and I moved up closer with 9 minutes to go because our worthless expletive fans had already left. I'm feeling a letter to the VAF or alumni magazine calling all the worthless people out.
Preach on, Brother Deekens. But please do remember that it's going to take time for our fans to get better, and for these old farts to die off. That 'Virginia Gentleman' crackback would have been enough to make me drop a fat man F-bomb on his Nagasaki ass.
2) This part is not for the faint of heart. Let's do the autopsy on the special teams gaffes during the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. In chronological order:
- Kickoff out of bounds
- Blocked punt (Auburn scores on a short field)
- Failed to recover on-side kick (Auburn scores on ensuing possession)
- Botched play on a fake field goal (-3 points)
- Blocked punt for a safety (2 points)
- 62 yard return on the free kick (Auburn kicks a field goal on ensuing possession)
By my math, the special teams is directly accountable for 19 of Auburn's points and cost us 3 of our own. That's a 22-point differential in a game we lost by 19. Not saying we would have won the game without these special teams miscues, but... we would have won the game without these special teams miscues.
3) We really, really missed Chase Minnifield and especially Steve Greer in this game. Henry Coley was eaten alive by that Malzahn Misdirection. And hase would have had more success sealing off that edge than did his replacements.
4) We are an improved team, no doubting that. But we're still very far away from being able to compete against SEC-caliber athletes and come out on top. Our defensive line looked SLOW and SMALL against War Eagle, with is a pretty damning statement. The linebackers were overmatched by that quick-read misdirection offense, despite a few really good plays turned in by LaRoy Reynolds. The secondary wasn't ever really tested, but when it was, it submitted C-minus work. Offensively, we were pretty successful, but you could still see how much their defensive speed was able to disrupt what we were trying to do. Overall, I think we looked like a good Vanderbilt or Kentucky team in the face of that SEC talent.
5) Mike Rocco is legit. He played a truly great game. 63%, 312 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT (which wasn't his fault at all). The box score doesn't lie. He wasn't taking shots downfield, but he was nailing the intermediate throws, which to me is more of a mark of a good overall quarterback. (Seen too much Jeff Blake and Carson Palmer in my life, I guess.) Anyway, I am very excited about the next two years with Rock as QB1. I think that position goes from a major question mark to an exclamation point, and now the staff will be able to properly build and develop a depth chart at the most important position on the football team.
6) I honestly think we were in over our head in this game. We out-kicked our coverage, if you will. With Virginia Tech called up to the BCS big leagues, it opened up the spot in Atlanta for us. The bowl game we should have been playing in was the Music City Bowl, against Mississippi State. And I think that's a game we would have won. It was great to play in Atlanta, but I think winning the bowl game would have meant more to the rebuilding of the program. So as "lucky" as the Chick-Fil-A draw was, I actually think it was fairly unlucky.
7) Orange helmets. I've heard from a few people saying they hated them. I think that's probably just because we lost. I loved the helmets. I didn't love the orange over orange over blue, though. Put those orange lids over a white away jersey and white pants... awesome. Or orange over orange over white, that'd be a crisp look for home games. But anyway, I liked the orange helmets. Now, we just a white one.
7) Orange helmets. I've heard from a few people saying they hated them. I think that's probably just because we lost. I loved the helmets. I didn't love the orange over orange over blue, though. Put those orange lids over a white away jersey and white pants... awesome. Or orange over orange over white, that'd be a crisp look for home games. But anyway, I liked the orange helmets. Now, we just a white one.
8) An 8-5 season, culminating with a 435-yard offensive effort against an SEC defense in a New Year's Eve bowl game... we are well ahead of schedule. Remember, this is the second year in a five-year rebuilding process. Mike London still has playing time to sell, and he now has "up and coming program" to sell. The future is bright, gotta wear shades.
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| Rocksteady. |
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